Does anyone know of a supplier who can sell me some original type Black Loop Pile carpet?..Preferably in the UK but anywhere in the world if the shipped price makes it not completely silly.
I am wanting to replace and replicate the original carpet in my +2S130 which is also used on the door cards and in the boot.
So far I have tried Sue Miller, Martrim, Coverdale and Woolies without success.
Thanks,
Alan.
Years ago I was searching the same as you for an original car. I heard there was a source in the USA but never found it. Hopefully you might get some response from our American cousins to point you in the right direction.
Edit:
Did a bit of Googling there seems to be carpet available but always seems to have a fleck in it. If youāre up for dyeing the carpet when you get it that might be a solution.
I think the carpet is called a Berber short loop pile. Closest I found was āgraniteā in colour, but for all intents and purposes it was black. It was a bit more regular than the carpet Lotus used. Being a domestic, not an automotive, carpet the backing was a lot thicker, but it fitted well. Unfortunately the suppler that I used sold out and didnāt restock, that said I imagine there are other domestic carpets out there that will come close.
I just saw Steveās post. My S3 was in the States for forty years (ex-UK RHD car). It had a mixture of original carpet and what I think was American black loop pile. The US carpet was a lot more irregular. Sadly I didnāt save any when I re-carpeted the car.
The attached photo shows the new UK sourced Berber carpet with what I believe to be a piece of original carpet on top.
Try this:
all-car-carpets.com.au/extr ā¦ arpet-roll
Hereās photo- it IS black, not grey
I purchased some loop pile carpet from these people. Theyāre in Massachusetts so it was nice to find a local supplier:
automotiveinteriors.com/aut ā¦ /17306.htm
The carpet looks fine to me but I canāt claim that itās a perfect replacement.
Nick
Looks good, Nick. How much material is needed, EXcluding the boot?
Looks good, and they will ship internationally it says. However they also say that all sales are temporarily restricted to just 1yard in length which i donāt think will be enough for a +2.
Also canāt see that they do it in black?
Alan.
I bought some from the supplier below. Not sure if they will ship outside of the U.S. It has the visible rows of loops like original BUT it also is 100% nylon so has a bit of āshineā to it unlike the original.
I think thatās the stuff that I had bits of in my S3, it was close, but the pile was a bit too big and irregular.
Original very faded carpet beside the yourautotrim carpet. I agree the pile is a bit āfluffierā than the original, which was quite short and tight.
No camera flash.
With camera flash to show theāshineā of nylon.
Alan,
Last year I searched the web for ages, and although I found loop pile carpet in the USA I could not find a supplier willing to export.
I discovered there are two types, loop pile (regular geometric pattern with symmetrical loops) and classic loop pile (irregular pattern with loops that are rather shaggy). All Car Carpets in Melbourne Australia can supply both. I was about to bite the bullet and pay a small fortune for shipping when COVID intervened (I cannot take the car to a trimmer).
I few weeks ago I decided to proceed with the order, but shipping was even more expensive. This shook me into another web search. Newton Commercials in Suffolk came up as suppliers of moulded āclassic loop pileā carpet for Ford Escort Mk 1. I phoned and spoke to Annabelle, she sent me a sample, and they will provide carpet flat from the roll. The carpet has not arrived yet.
On my car the door cards are trimmed in āloop pileā which I have ordered from All Car Carpets, as I donāt need much it is coming by Australia Post.
Hope this helps,
Richard Hawkins
Thanks all for the input and thoughts on where to get this fromā¦Much appreciated!
Richard,
That is great info about Newton Commercials. It really would help to source in the UK if possible.
I had been looking everywhere for ages until I contracted Covid-19 which put me out of action but thankfully now in recovery mode after 5 weeks of hell and hoping to get back to now sorting this carpet problem.
I will give Annabelle at Newton a call and see if I too can get a sample.
Shipping from Oz sounds a bit expensive!
The carpet from yourautotrim in that Scott suggested also looked a possibility until I saw that they only seem to ship in the US.
Thanks all,
Alan.
Try Martrim in the UK. They show a loop pile carpet on their website.Not sure how close this is to original though.
They supply various trim items for Lotus including the basket weave material for the Elan seats. Always helpful. Worth a look
As I said in my opening post unfortunately Martrim contrary to their website cannot supply black loop pile carpet.
Alan
Greg,
I only ordered enough for the trunk/boot because the carpets in the cabin are OK. I ordered underfelt for the cabin from yourautotrim.com/ but ended up with far too much of the stuff so wouldnāt trust my numbers!
Alan,
Yes it is available in black. You get to select it in a pulldown menu when ordering (along with over 40 other colours, which seems a bit unlikely).
I would call them about the one yard limit - they might be flexible about it and/or may not have updated their website recently.
Nick
A few years ago, Martrim sent me samples which appeared to be identical to the original carpet. I ordered a few yards and it was perfect. Itās too bad they donāt have it anymore.
If your carpet has holes or is worn through, youāll have to keep searching. But otherwise, you can re-spray the original with carpet dye. Yes, itās a lot of work to mask off the rest of the interior but in my opinion well worth it.
The dye does not rub off on your clothing, and it lasts about 15 years before it starts to fade again.
Steve
Alan,
Last year Martrim sent me a sample. The carpet is loop pile and black, but the loops are much smaller than those on my Elan.
Richard Hawkins
Alan,
Last year Martrim sent me a sample of black loop pile. The carpet is black and loop pile, but the loops are much smaller than the carpet in my Elan.
Richard Hawkins
Richard,
Do you remember who supplied the loop pile carpet in the states? Iāve been looking at sources here in the USA but am not finding a good match, all lacking regular geometric pattern with symmetrical loops.
Thanks
Gentlemen
I used to restore vintage Packardās here in the US.
When I couldnāt find something I needed I would contact other restoration shops to either find out who they used as a supplier or get suggestions of where to look.
There must be someone in your area doing Lotus restorations that you can talk to.
Iāll be needing this too when I get my 1967 SS back on the road
Good luck,
Paul
